In the world of gait challenges from spinal cord injury, this is potentially huge.“In the July 1st issue of The Journal of Neuroscience, HKUST researchers report that the deletion of the PTEN gene would enhance compensatory sprouting of uninjured CST axons.”

“It not only promoted the sprouting of uninjured CST axons, but also enabled the regeneration of injured axons past the lesion in a mouse model of spinal cord injury, even when treatment was delayed up to 1 year after the original injury. The results considerably extend the window of opportunity for regenerating CST axons severed in spinal cord injuries.”